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DETERMINATION ON
SERVICE DELIVERY |
| Determination on
Service Delivery |
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Background |
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The Government of PNG has long recognized the
importance of clarifying the administrative functions of all levels of
government, particularly in improving the delivery of government services.
When the Organic Law on Provincial and
Local-level Governments (OLPGLLG) was adopted in 1995, it included
provisions (ie. Section 43 and 45) that enable the government to set out the
principal administrative functions of Provincial and Local-level Governments in
an Act.
In 2009, the National Parliament passed such an
Act - Known as the Inter-government Relations (Functions and Funding)
Act. This Act provides that the Governor-General, as the Head of State, can
determine by a notice in the National Gazette, the service delivery functions
and responsibilities of any or all Provincial Governments and Local-level
Governments.
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What is the Determination? |
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The Determination is a government decision
assigning service delivery functions and responsibilities to;
- Provincial Governments;
- urban Local-level Governments; and
- rural Local-level Governments.
The Determination focuses on those
activities which support the day to day delivery of government services. It also
includes the development of policies and plans and the operation and running of
Boards and Committees. Examples include: farmer training, the development of
District HIV and AIDS Plans, providing logistical and technical support to the
Provincial Council of Women and the maintenance of government office buildings.
The Determination does not cover activities
which are capital related such as the construction of staff housing or the
building of schools. |
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Who has endorsed the Determination? |
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The Determination was endorsed by the NEC on
the 26 June 2009 under Cabinet Decision 104/2009. The Determination is
awaiting sign off by the Governor-General before it is published in the National
Gazette.
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Why was the Determination developed? |
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The Determination was developed for a number of
reasons, including:
- to advice Provincial and Local-level
Governments of the functions and responsibilities they should be planning
and budgeting for;
- to remove confusion regarding what each
level of government is responsible for;
- to identify and address gaps and
duplications in the delivery of services;
- to encourage greater consistency in the
work undertaken by Provincial Governments and to document variations in
practices where they exist;
- to encourage each level of government to
invest in their own capacity, both in terms of people and systems;
- facilitate better working relationships
between different levels of government by providing certainty about what
each level of government does.
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How was the Determination
developed? |
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The Determination was developed following a review
of government legislation, policies, plans and budgets and after years of
consultation with officers from the National, Provincial and Local-level
Governments.
The development of the Determination was
overseen by a sub-committee to the Provincial and Local-level Service Monitoring
Authority (PLLSMA). The sub-committee comprised representatives from the
Department of Provincial and Local Government Affairs (DPLGA), The National
Economic Fiscal Commission (NEFC), the Department of Prime Minister and NEC, the
Treasury Department, the Department of Personal Management, and the Department
of National Planning and Monitoring.
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Who are the key Stakeholders impacted by the
Determination? |
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The principal stakeholders impacted include the
Provincial and Local-level Governments who now have a legal document which
outlines the activities they should be doing.
National agencies are also impacted by the
Determination, particularly as any activity not detailed in the
Determination is assumed to be theirs.
Churches and NGOs are also impacted by the
Determination given that they deliver many services covered by the
Determination.
The Determination is also to be of interest to
civil society who are the beneficiaries of many of the activities outlined in
the Determination and donors who are making contributions to assist
the Government of PNG improve the delivery of services. |
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How will
the Determination be rolled out? |
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The Determination will be implemented in three
stages:
Stage One - Awarenes
The purpose of this stage is to create awareness
of the Determination across all stakeholders and to ensure these stakeholders
understand the full function and responsibilities of each level of government.
The awareness will involve a range of activities such as:
- distributing the Determination to all
stakeholders,
- articles and advertisements in news papers,
- NBC talk back radio; and
- workshops, presentations and discussions
with stakeholders including Provincial Governments, National Agencies.
During awareness, stakeholders are encouraged to
provide feedback on how to improve the Determination. The awareness stage
has already begun and is expected to run during most of 2010.
Stage Two -
Using and Applying
The purpose of this stage is to get stakeholders
to apply the Determination in the work place. This means being true to
the functions and responsibilities in the Determination and to use it in
development planning, budgeting and policy processes.
While stakeholders such as Provincial and
Local-level Government are encouraged to apply the Determination as soon
as it is gazetted, the roll out of initiatives to assist these stakeholders
understand how to do this will not commence until stage one has been
successfully completed.
This is expected to occur in the later part of
2010 as these levels of government begin to prepare their 2011 Budgets.
Stage Three
- Ownership
With this stage, the Determination
institutionalized. This means it is understood, accepted and applied by all
levels of government and that is fully integrated into the government system and
processes - particularly those relating to budgeting, planning policy, human
resource managements and monitoring and evaluation.
This stage also includes implementing the
processes by which functions and responsibilities can be moved from one level of
government to amother |
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This stage is expected to take a number of years.
Providing feedback and comments. |
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Providing Feedback and Comments. |
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Providing
Feedback and Comments on the Determination? |
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The Determination is a living document which
can be amended subject to the endorsement of PLLSMA and NEC and sign off and
gazetted of the Governor-General.
All stakeholders are encouraged to provide
feedback and comments on the Determination so that it can be improved and
refined. The first refinement of the Determination is planned at the end
of 2010.
Feedback and comments should be sent to: |
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The Secretary, |
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Department of Provincial and Local Government
Affairs, |
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PO Box 1287, |
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Boroko, NCD |
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